This Caprese Salad or Insalata Caprese is refreshing, summery and so good! One of the simplest salads, be sure to use fresh ingredients to get the most flavor from this easy Caprese salad!
Caprese simply means food prepared in the Capri style. The Isle of Capri is located in the Campania region of Italy.
Sometimes it is really easy to mess up the simplest of things and Caprese salad happens to be one of them. Because such few ingredients go into this salad, it is imperative to use the best, freshest and choicest ingredients to make this salad worth enjoying.
If you haven’t realized it by now, the colors in this salad, in fact, are representative of the colors of the Italian flag.
- WHAT IS CAPRESE SALAD?
- ORIGIN OF CAPRESE SALAD
- INGREDIENTS IN CAPRESE SALAD
- HOW TO MAKE CAPRESE SALAD?
- SOME OTHER AWESOME THINGS TO TRY WITH TOMATO, MOZZARELLA, AND BASIL LEAVES TRIO
- HERE ARE SOME MORE EASY AND DELICIOUS SALADS TO TRY
- STEP BY STEP INSTRUCTIONS TO MAKE CAPRESE SALAD
- HOW TO MAKE CAPRESE SALAD?
- Caprese Salad | Italian Salad With Mozzarella, Tomatoes & Basil
WHAT IS CAPRESE SALAD?
Caprese (pronounced as kuh-prey-zey or kuh-prey-zee in English or kuh-prey-sey in America) is an Italian salad, made with fresh buffalo mozzarella, ripe, plum tomatoes, and fresh basil leaves. Traditionally, there is no balsamic dressing in this salad. Just good quality olive oil and some sea salt are all you need to season the salad.
ORIGIN OF CAPRESE SALAD
Some sources report it was an invention of a patriotic mason who after World War I loved to enclose the colors of the tricolor inside a fragrant bun. Surely the first historical mention is from the early 1920s when it appeared in the menu at the Hotel Quisisana.
Decades later, precisely in the 1950s, it is reported that King Farouk, asking for something light as an afternoon appetizer, was served a sandwich stuffed with mozzarella, tomato, and basil. It is therefore definitely one of the discoveries of the twentieth century.
With mass tourism, the caprese ceased to be a Capri recipe and became an international dish. Meanwhile, the dish was improved when the traditional vaccine (cow’s milk) mozzarella started to be replaced with bufala mozzarella, a dairy product typical of Campania. {Source- Italyheritage }
INGREDIENTS IN CAPRESE SALAD
There are only 4 basic ingredients that you will need to make Caprese salad
- TOMATOES – Make sure you use tomatoes that are fresh, sweet and juicy. Ideally, tomatoes are at their peak in summer. So this salad is best enjoyed during this season. Don’t even bother making this during the winters, it will just be mediocre. Vine tomatoes, beefsteak tomatoes, heirloom tomatoes, or juicy cherry tomatoes are all great for this salad
- MOZZARELLA CHEESE – As mentioned in the origin of caprese salad, cows (Vacca) milk cheese was used, which was later replaced by fresh buffalo milk mozzarella and since then caprese salad has been prepared using buffalo mozzarella. Water-packet mozzarella cheese is the best for this salad, but it can be a real challenge to find it. If you can, by all means, go ahead and use it. Or use the best, fresh cow’s milk mozzarella you can get hold of. You want it to be rich and creamy and not rubbery.
- BASIL LEAVES – Again basil are in abundance during the summer, yet another good reason for this salad to be made and enjoyed the most during its season. Use the smaller basil leaves for best results. The flavors are fresh and you will enjoy that deliciousness. For this salad, I used my fresh, homegrown basil. If you have no access to fresh basil leaves, you could make a caprese salad with dried basil, but it really will not be the same. I strongly recommend you make this fresh caprese salad with fresh basil leaves.
- EXTRA VIRGIN OLIVE OIL – So you don’t need to splurge and get an exorbitantly priced olive oil all the way from Italy. Get the best you can!
And of course, you do need the coarse sea salt and freshly ground pepper to season it well. Pepper, though, is optional.
HOW TO MAKE CAPRESE SALAD?
Caprese salad or Insalata Caprese is one of the easiest salads to make. Simply arrange sliced tomato and mozzarella along with basil leaves alternatively on your favorite serving platter. Drizzle olive oil and sprinkle salt and freshly cracked pepper. That’s all!
Now if you don’t like sticking to the traditional version, feel free to drizzle the balsamic reduction or some pesto mixed with olive oil and drizzled over the salad. You can also throw in some olives. Or add some lettuce leaves, either at the bottom of the bowl topped with chopped tomatoes, mozzarella, and basil or torn into pieces and mixed with the tomato and mozzarella cheese, dressed with olive oil, or balsamic or red wine vinegar.
Or make a chopped caprese salad, along with other veggies or fruits.
Personally, I prefer to stick to the simple version, why complicate things, right?
Grilled chicken breasts or any other protein of your choice along with some pasta would go well with a Caprese salad. Even some nice, crusty bread would be wonderful to soak up all those tomato and olive oil juices.
SOME OTHER AWESOME THINGS TO TRY WITH TOMATO, MOZZARELLA, AND BASIL LEAVES TRIO
- Caprese Pizza
- Tomato, and Mozzarella bites | Caprese salad on a stick | Caprese salad skewers with balsamic drizzle
- Caprese pasta salad
- Caprese Sandwich
I have mentioned this before that I’m not a salad person. But I definitely enjoy a good and easy, fuss-free salad that’s packed with flavor and texture. This Caprese salad is just that. The sweet, juiciness from the tomatoes, the rich and creamy mozzarella cheese, the aroma and sweetness from the basil, all tied together with a drizzle of olive oil, salt, and pepper! Nothing beats this humble yet downright delicious salad.
Whatever you choose to make, this tomato, basil, mozzarella appetizer is a sure shot crowd pleaser. It not only is simple to put together, but those colors are really pretty as well! You can easily make this Caprese salad recipe for a large crowd too, use cherry tomatoes and small mozzarella balls, combine everything in a large bowl, add chopped fresh basil leaves and season the salad well!
You should definitely try this easy Caprese salad recipe before the summer ends! Buon appetito!
HERE ARE SOME MORE EASY AND DELICIOUS SALADS TO TRY
- Watermelon Cucumber Feta Salad with mint and basil
- Mediterranean quinoa and chickpea salad
- Strawberry Spinach Salad
- Blood Orange Salad
- Greek Salad
STEP BY STEP INSTRUCTIONS TO MAKE CAPRESE SALAD
1.Cut the tomatoes into 1/4-inch thick slices.
2.Cut the mozzarella into 1/4-inch thick round slices.
3.Arrange alternate slices of tomato and mozzarella on a serving platter. Place a basil leaf in between the tomato and mozzarella slices.
4.Season with sea salt and freshly cracked pepper. Drizzle the olive oil. Serve immediately.
NOTE
1.If you do not like the whole basil leaves, tear it by hands into smaller bits. Avoid using a knife to chop the basil.
HOW TO MAKE CAPRESE SALAD?
Caprese Salad | Italian Salad With Mozzarella, Tomatoes & Basil
Ingredients1x2x3x
- 12 oz / 340 grams tomatoes on the vine, about 3 tomatoes
- 8 oz / 225 grams fresh mozzarella cheese
- About 10 basil leaves
- Coarse sea salt, to season
- Freshly ground black pepper, to season
- 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, or as required
Instructions
- Cut the tomatoes into 1/4-inch thick slices.
- Cut the mozzarella into 1/4-inch thick round slices.
- Arrange alternate slices of tomato and mozzarella on a serving platter. Place a basil leaf in between the tomato and mozzarella slices.
- Season with sea salt and freshly cracked pepper. Drizzle the olive oil. Serve immediately.
Notes
- If you do not like the whole basil leaves, tear it by hands into smaller bits. Avoid using a knife to chop the basil.
I would love to hear from you, please feel free to share your feedback with photos and suggestions to me at aromaticessence77@gmail.com
You can also follow me on :
Facebook @ Aromaticessence
Pinterest @ Aromatic Essence
Instagram @ aromatic_essence77
Twitter @ freda_dias
Regards,
Freda
Caprese Salad | Italian Salad With Mozzarella, Tomatoes & Basil
Ingredients
- 12 oz / 340 grams tomatoes on the vine, about 3 tomatoes
- 8 oz / 225 grams fresh mozzarella cheese
- About 10 basil leaves
- Coarse sea salt, to season
- Freshly ground black pepper, to season
- 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, or as required
Instructions
- Cut the tomatoes into 1/4-inch thick slices.
- Cut the mozzarella into 1/4-inch thick round slices.
- Arrange alternate slices of tomato and mozzarella on a serving platter. Place a basil leaf in between the tomato and mozzarella slices.
- Season with sea salt and freshly cracked pepper. Drizzle the olive oil. Serve immediately.
Notes
- If you do not like the whole basil leaves, tear it by hands into smaller bits. Avoid using a knife to chop the basil.
This easy banana bread recipe yields a moist, soft, delicious bread and has a lovely banana flavor. The only recipe you need to make the best eggless banana bread!
How are you guys doing? It’s been a while that I blogged, almost 2 weeks. I’ve not been up to much besides taking a short break to enjoy some time in Alaska. The cool and pleasant weather was such a welcome break from Louisiana’s hot, humid and dry summer! The mammoth glaciers are truly mesmerizing and the unique wildlife is another thing you must see if you visit Alaska. Spotting a moose, reindeer, elk, wood bison et al was very exciting! We didn’t get a chance to see the Northern lights due to the long daylight hours in July, but it was an amazing and welcome break overall. Here are some pics of beautiful Alaska, though my pics do no justice since the weather was bad when we went to see the glaciers.
Getting back to today’s post, let’s talk about this easy banana bread recipe.
What do you do with overripe bananas? I’m sure most of you would unanimously agree that banana bread would be the likely choice. Or 2 ingredient banana pancakes? Fritters? banana ice cream? Or freeze them and use in smoothies?
- BANANA BREAD INGREDIENTS
- HOW TO MAKE BANANA BREAD?
- ENJOYED THIS EASY BANANA BREAD RECIPE? YOU MAY ALSO LIKE THESE SIMILAR LOAF CAKES
- STEP BY STEP INSTRUCTIONS TO MAKE EASY AND MOIST, EGGLESS BANANA NUT BREAD
- HOW TO MAKE EGGLESS BANANA BREAD?
- Easy Banana Bread Recipe (Eggless)
BANANA BREAD INGREDIENTS
You will need basic ingredients for this easy, moist banana bread recipe . Flour, leavening agents, sugar, milk, vanilla extract to flavor it up, and bananas of course. You could also add some cinnamon if you like.
I’ve used oil instead of butter, which also makes this homemade banana bread really moist. You can replace the oil with melted butter.
This eggless banana bread is good even without any eggs. Bananas have been used as a replacement for eggs. And in the case of this recipe, it does the same along with giving it the yummy banana flavor. You can add up to 3 bananas in this recipe, however, if the bananas are overripe and sweet, I find 2 bananas work just right.
You can easily use this recipe to make vegan banana bread by swapping the milk with some almond, soy milk or any plant-based milk of your choice.
HOW TO MAKE BANANA BREAD?
Once you gather all your ingredients, simply mix the wet and dry ingredients, pour the batter into your loaf tin and bake, that’s about it! You don’t really need any special equipment, no mixer or hand beater. Just 2 bowls, whisk and a spatula to prepare this incredibly easy quick bread batter.
I absolutely love making quick breads, some of my favorites that I make often are zucchini bread, pumpkin bread, and lots of variation to this basic banana bread recipe , such as-
- Addition of chocolate chips to make a chocolate chip banana bread
- Addition of strawberries or blueberries to make make a strawberry banana bread or blueberry banana bread
- Or add some chopped pecans to make a banana pecan bread
- Or throw in some cranberries to make a banana cranberry bread
- And one of my favorite variation, of course, chocolate banana bread. Some cocoa powder and chocolate chips make this bread even better. But then, it does make anything better, isn’t it?
Today, I added some chopped walnuts for this banana walnut bread recipe . I love biting into those tiny walnut bits. It pairs excellently well with the flavor of the bananas.
This easy banana bread recipe is so good, soft and light, that it could easily pass off as a banana cake. It is the best ever banana bread that I’ve had. You could also make banana muffins with the same batter.
My next quest would be to try and make a healthier version of this easy banana bread recipe. I intend on replacing the flour, oil, and sugar. I will definitely share that healthy banana bread recipe if I love how it turns out!
For now, I hope you will give this easy banana bread recipe a go, and if you do, I’d love to know how it turned out for you. You can try any of the suggested variations mentioned above too.
Eggless mango loaf cake
Date and walnut loaf (eggless)
Eggless marble cake
STEP BY STEP INSTRUCTIONS TO MAKE EASY AND MOIST, EGGLESS BANANA NUT BREAD
1.Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F / 180 degrees C, position a rack in the middle of the oven. Grease a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan with little oil and dust with flour to coat the pan, or you may use parchment paper. {My loaf pan dimensions- 25.5 cms x 11.5 cms (10 x 5 inches), height of 7 cms}.
2.In a medium mixing bowl, sift all the dry ingredients twice (1.5 cups flour, 1.5 tsp baking powder, and 1/4 tsp baking soda), from a height. Add 1/2 tsp salt, whisk until well combined. Set aside.
3.Transfer the bananas (1 cup mashed) in a medium-sized bowl, mash using the back of the fork.
4.Add all the other wet ingredients (3/4 cup sugar, 1/3 cup oil, 1/2 cup milk, 1 tsp vanilla extract, and 1 tsp butter extract) to the mashed banana, whisk until you have a homogeneous mixture.
5.Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, fold gently just until combined and no more flour pockets are visible. Do not overmix the batter.
6.Add 1/2 cup of chopped walnuts (coated with 1 tsp flour, dust off excess flour) and fold it in the batter.
7.Transfer the batter to the baking pan. Gently tap it on the counter 2-3 times to remove the air bubbles. Bake on the middle rack for 55-60 min or until the toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. If you feel the top is browning quickly and the bread is still uncooked, cover with a foil during the last 10-15 minutes of baking.
8.Cool the bread on a rack in the loaf pan for 15 minutes, then remove from the pan and cool on the rack completely. Let the cake cool down completely before slicing. This will ensure you have nice, clean slices. I usually bake at night and slice it in the morning.
NOTES
1.This amount of sugar was the right sweetness for us. If you like a sweeter banana bread, increase the sugar to 1 cup. If you prefer it on the less sweet side, decrease it to 1/2 cup.
2.You may also add some cinnamon powder along with the vanilla extract.
3.Store the bread in an airtight container at room temperature. It will stay good for 4-5 days. I haven’t tried longer than that. You can also freeze individual slices wrapped with cling film, and aluminum foil for up to 3 months. Thaw it at room temperature or in the microwave for a quick serve, about 10-15 seconds, or until thawed.
HOW TO MAKE EGGLESS BANANA BREAD?
Easy Banana Bread Recipe (Eggless)
Ingredients1x2x3x
Measuring cup used, 1 Cup = 250 ml, 1 tsp = 5 ml
Dry ingredients
- 1 & 1/2 cups / 214 grams / 7.5 oz unbleached all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
- 1 & 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
Wet ingredients
- 3/4 cup / 157 grams / 5.5 oz sugar
- 1/3 cup flavorless oil
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 tsp butter extract, optional
- 2 overripe bananas, peeled (1 cup of mashed banana)
Other ingredients
- 1/2 cup / 60 grams / 2.1 oz chopped walnuts, dusted with 1 tsp flour
- Oil spray/oil and flour as needed, to grease and dust the pan
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F / 180 degrees C, position a rack in the middle of the oven. Grease a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan with little oil and dust with flour to coat the pan, or you may use parchment paper. {My loaf pan dimensions- 25.5 cms x 11.5 cms (10 x 5 inches), height of 7 cms}.
- In a medium mixing bowl, sift all the dry ingredients twice, from a height. Add salt, whisk until well combined. Set aside.
- Transfer the bananas in a medium-sized bowl, mash using the back of the fork.
- Add all the other wet ingredients to the mashed banana, whisk until you have a homogeneous mixture.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, fold gently just until combined and no more flour pockets are visible. Do not overmix the batter.
- Add the chopped walnuts and fold it in the batter.
- Transfer the batter to the baking pan. Gently tap it on the counter 2-3 times to remove the air bubbles. Bake on the middle rack for 55-60 min or until the toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. If you feel the top is browning quickly and the bread is still uncooked, cover with a foil during the last 10-15 minutes of baking.
- Cool the bread on a rack in the loaf pan for 15 minutes, then remove from the pan and cool on the rack completely. Let the cake cool down completely before slicing. This will ensure you have nice, clean slices. I usually bake at night and slice it in the morning.
Notes
I would love to hear from you, please feel free to share your feedback with photos and suggestions to me at aromaticessence77@gmail.com
You can also follow me on :
Facebook @ Aromaticessence
Pinterest @ Aromatic Essence
Instagram @ aromatic_essence77
Twitter @ freda_dias
Regards,
Freda
